A Wonderful World of Jealousy
by AwakenToOblivion
Summary: (ORIGINALLY POSTED ON OLD/DELETED ACCOUNT) In which Lucy learns that maybe jealousy isn't so bad after all. NALU and the slightest bit of LoLu, or whatever the heck you call the pairing for LucyXLoke.


**A/N: ****I managed to type this little story up during English at school cause I had extra time. It's kinda rushed, so sorry.**

**I like Lisanna as a character. I don't like NaLi, though. Come on, even Lisanna ships NaLu! xD**

"_Welcome to the wonderful world of jealousy_, he thought. _For the price of admission, you get a splitting headache, a nearly irresistible urge to commit murder, and an inferiority complex. Yippee." __―_J.R. Ward, _Dark Lover_

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><p><em>(Hey… Do you know how it feels to wake up next to you?)<em>

A yawn was heard as a figure rose slowly, stretching her arms as she scratched the top of her blonde hair. Lucy blinked, her brown eyes working hard to adjust to the brightness. All she saw now was her room covered in a thick layer of blurriness like she suddenly needed glasses.

Huh. She hadn't slept this well since… Oh, well, she couldn't remember the last time she had slept this well. All those missions Natsu was always dragging her off to usually gave her enough to pay for her rent, but it meant less time to rest. Of course, there were also those sad, sad times when they didn't get payment _at all_ due to the havoc and ruin they (or rather, _Natsu_) wreak upon the town or village that was supposed to be rescued.

Lucy never complained, though. It was always fun to go on missions with Team Natsu. She would never admit this, but Lucy found that missions with just Natsu and her - just the two of them - always seemed more appealing to her.

Right at the moment when a faint smile began to spread on her lips, she felt the bed covers inches away from her stir. Her brown eyes were locked onto the figure slowly rising like she had before. A groggy black pair of eyes turned alert and cheerful as they met hers, and he grinned a bright grin, as if he were completely unaffected by the fact that he had slept next to her. In the same bed.

And it wasn't the first time he had decided to, too.

"Man, Luce, do you have any idea how comfy your bed is? Honestly, mine is made out of wood. Wood! Yours is so fluffy and soft! And-" he paused, noticing how she was staring at him. Her eyes were not full of anger - yet.

"Luce?" Natsu cocked his head, blinking once as he tried to understand why his partner was acting in such a blank way. "Are you o-"

The pink-haired Dragon Slayer never finished his sentence. Lucy tensed; her fists suddenly clenched the same way her teeth and eyes were. He never saw it coming, either.

With an enraged screech, she had the other slammed up against the wall with her foot, displaying strength that would have made Erza nod in approval.

The morning wasn't much different than her other mornings, really.

_(Hey… Do you know how it feels like when you ignore me?)_

Lucy missed those mornings. She never thought she would, but she did. Lucy missed the mornings where she would wake up next to a boy who was technically an intruder to her home. Hell, she even missed Happy, who was currently off _vacationing_ (as the blue cat had said) with Carla. In reality, he tagged along on a mission with Wendy and some other guild members.

After all, when Lisanna came back, Natsu had spent less time with her. Don't get her wrong, Lucy was also happy that Lisanna was finally back, and that Natsu was relieved, but weren't they spending a _little too much_ time together? He was almost always with Lisanna, always saying her name with a sort of newfound happiness.

He had never done that with her, Lucy Heartfilia. As much as she hated to admit it, Lucy had to come to terms with the fact that she was jealous.

She was jealous of how he seemed to spend all day with Lisanna.

She was jealous of how he cracked jokes with Lisanna instead of her.

She was jealous of how he treated Lisanna, like the white-haired girl was more than a friend.

She was jealous of every time his eyes seemed to slip away when she was trying to speak to him, and flicker to Lisanna.

Lucy was jealous of Lisanna Strauss.

Sighing, she forced her gaze away from Natsu and Lisanna as she went back to sipping her vanilla shake. Closing her eyes tightly, she tried to turn her mind away from the two; she tried to focus on the taste of the vanilla shake. The creamy, icy, light-yet-strong taste of the vanilla against her tongue.

The vanilla shake tasted bland.

It was until Lucy's ears caught whispers from her fellow guild members of how Natsu and Lisanna were "such a great couple together" that made her shove her vanilla shake away abruptly and quite loudly. The shake nearly toppled over, but righted itself in time before it could spill. Releasing a slight strained breath, the celestial mage stood with darkened eyes and left the guild swiftly, trying to avoid further whispers and sights of _them _together.

However, Lucy did not notice how Natsu had stopped in his storytelling with Lisanna and watched her leave with concern growing in his eyes.

_(Hey… Do you know how it feels like when you can't even understand your own feelings?)_

The next day, Mirajane took notice in her friend's change in personality.

"Lucy? Is there something bothering you?" she questioned, slight concern was displayed in her voice, as well as a fraction of curiosity. Lucy set down her vanilla shake with a _clink_ of glass against marble and returned her gaze with a wide-eyed look.

"How could you tell?"

This caused a small laugh to bubble out of Mirajane.

"Well, you've been sighing all day, and you've had that same vanilla shake for a few hours now. You haven't even taken a sip," she eyed Lucy jokingly. "It makes me wonder if my way of making vanilla shakes has become dull."

"No, no, no!" Lucy raised a hand. "It's not your shakes, it's just… I dunno. Everything I eat seems to be tasteless these days."

"Exactly," Mirajane leaned forward against the counter, setting her arms on the cool marble. "So, I'm going to assume that there's something that's bothering you. Something that has been plaguing your thoughts lately."

Lucy thought of lying, but Mirajane was a close friend. She doubted the older girl would laugh or make fun of her in a mean or negative way. _Mira will probably find out anyway, she seems to notice everything around this guild, _Lucy thought, deciding.

"It's Natsu and Lisanna," she admitted, bowing her head in shame. Mirajane's eyes widened, before giving small, kind smile.

"Wow. I was not expecting you to come out so bluntly and easily." Her smile never wavered. "But Lucy, you have nothing to worry about."

Lucy's head shot up, the cloud of darkness no longer surrounding her.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, that Natsu is only just… worried, maybe. I think he's afraid that Lisanna will disappear again, that her presence here isn't permanent. Eventually though, I'm sure he'll come to terms with the fact that Lisanna is here to stay, and he won't be so clingy anymore. He'll return to being only your partner pretty soon," Mirajane explained, ending with a wink, which made Lucy find the design of the counter beneath her suddenly very captivating.

She couldn't have been implying that Lucy wanted Natsu only for herself, right? Jealousy was one thing, but that was selfishness! Wasn't it?

The celestial mage frowned. What _was_ Natsu to her, anyway? At first, she had thought of him as a great friend to have, extremely trustworthy and loyal - but now… she didn't know how to describe it.

Lucy felt like she could throw her life into his hands, and be fine - but that was just _trust_, right? Surely, it had to be that he was only a really, _really_ close friend.

Even if she wanted to be more than friends. Friends can feel that way.

She knew that that feeling was definitely not allowed or accepted in the friend category, and this knowledge prompted her to slam her head against the counter in her frustration and confusion. Mirajane winced at Lucy's rather violent action - the poor girl would sport a rather large bruise from that.

Lucy was ignorant to this, as her mind was swimming with pain and a single question - _Am I in love with Natsu Dragneel?_

Her head made harsh contact with the marble counter once again when one part of Lucy's brain answered, "_Yes, of course you are, you dimwit."_

(_Hey… Do you know how it feels like when I even see you?)_

Lucy had lied in bed, and in her apartment for the past week staring at the ceiling. She couldn't go back to the guild because of Natsu. It was extremely cowardly, she knew - but facing him just didn't seem like something she could do now.

She let out a humorless chuckle. That wasn't much of a reason; it just made her sound more cowardly. If she loves someone who doesn't love her back, she needed to toughen up and face it, rather than hiding in the security of her apartment. Besides, sooner or later, Natsu might notice her absence and sneak into her apartment again to find her.

"Would he?" she asked no one in particular. "Would he worry or care enough to come search for me?"

_Once again, I am being selfish,_ Lucy thought. _Natsu has better things to do than be worried about me._ Thinking logically though, and due to past experiences (which were full of him lighting houses on fire like the pyromaniac he is), she did have to question if Natsu actually had better things to do.

This was foolish, and childish. Was she seriously moping around? Lucy knew that she'd have to accept Natsu with Lisanna sometime. They had even agreed to _marry_ when they were younger. She couldn't help but ask herself if that was just because they were children and didn't know any better at the time, or they both really did have legitimate feelings for each other before.

She couldn't help but hope it was the former, too.

(_Hey… Do you know how it feels like when you worry me so often?)_

Natsu gave a huff and crossed his arms.

"I don't get it. I don't get girls. I don't get Lucy. Why is she so sad and angry? When I try to approach her, she gets _even more_ sad and angry, along with that look that-" Noting that Erza was only a few feet to his left, Natsu had the sense to lower his voice. "-Reminds me a lot of Erza when someone has stolen her cake."

Lisanna, who was sitting opposite of him, laughed.

"Do you really not get it? You've been spending a lot of time with me, and less time with Lucy, you know," she hinted lightly. In response, he frowned and furrowed his brows.

"So… is Luce just lonely?"

"Hm… Close enough, I guess. Yeah, Lucy is a bit lonely since you've been spending more time with me. You should spend more time with her, it'll make her happier." Lisanna shrugged, trying to suggest it innocently. Clearly, Natsu wasn't one to understand emotions as easily as a normal person would, but that didn't mean he didn't feel them. The idea that he was concerned with Lucy was exciting to her at first, though now it had become a little aggravating that he barely understood them.

Did he really not notice that all he ever talked about with her was about Lucy?

"Okay," Natsu nodded, "but what do I do? Like I said, every time I go near her, it's like I'm some Dark Guild member approaching her. She gives off this scary vibe. Luce doesn't even show up at the guild anymore! Why?"

Lisanna sighed and covered her forehead gently with a hand. He really didn't get it. She felt bad for Lucy.

"She's jealous, Natsu. She's jealous that we're spending so much time together." There. She had said it.

Natsu frowned, becoming more perplexed.

"What? Why would she be jealous of us spending time together? We're all friends, after all."

Well. So, this was how it felt when you wanted to bury your head onto a hard surface. Lisanna officially understood this notion.

When Natsu had first came to her, he was only talking about Lucy. This was no exaggeration, as the Dragon Slayer would speak of everything. _Everything._ How their missions were, how Lucy's smile always made him want to work harder, all the way to how comfortable Lucy's bed was (Lisanna _really_ didn't want to know how he came to this conclusion).

Lisanna asked Natsu why he was talking to her about Lucy rather than speaking to the actual girl himself, he answered, to her surprise, with a nervous and sheepish grin. He explained that lately, it had suddenly become awkward for some reason for him when speaking with the blonde-haired girl. He would have trouble controlling his breathing, his heart would be all over the place, and he found himself trying to watch his words more often whenever he could.

Now, this was enough to spark the engine of hope within Lisanna that Natsu wasn't wholly dense, and had an idea of _love_. Of course, that was shattered the moment she noticed he had used the word "friend" for Lucy numerous times with no problem.

Nonetheless, even if he wasn't aware, Lisanna was sure that Natsu had feelings for Lucy. It was her duty to bring them together - it was the least she could do to thank them for accepting her back into Fairy Tail from Edolas (many times she would catch herself missing her companions in the Fairy Tail of Edolas greatly; it was a place she would never forget).

Shaking herself back into reality, she set herself to look directly at Natsu. How could she explain this simply for him?

"Alright, think of it this way. Lucy is your partner, right? Do you like spending time with her?"

"Of course!"

"Right, so how would you feel if she suddenly took Loke on missions and never invited you?"

Natsu's eyes darkened, and he leaned back on his chair. His gaze was no longer curious, but rather more serious and slightly angry. _Finally!_ Lisanna thanked the heavens. _A small reaction. It's _something_!_

"And why would she do that?" his voice was quieter, darker in a way. The white-haired girl knew he meant no harm to her, but to Loke - would be a different story. She gave a mental apology to the lion spirit.

"Because she likes him more. I mean, she _did_ save his life before, and he _is_ very grateful to her, saving her life many times too…" she trailed off. It was cruel to treat and play with Natsu's feelings like this, but he had to know. Lucy wasn't going to wait forever for him, so someone had to do something, to make the push towards the window of opportunity.

"_So?!" _Natsu growled. "I've saved her countless times! Do you know how many times Loke never showed up when she was in danger? She's _my_ partner."

It took all Lisanna had not to break out into a grin. _Now_, he would become green with envy.

"How do you know that?" she asked innocently - before jumping in surprise at the sharp sound of Natsu slamming the table with both palms while shooting upright. The poor wooden thing nearly collapsed at the sudden amount of pressure inflicted by a Dragon Slayer. Clenching his teeth, he stiffly sat back down.

"Because she's Luce," he finally answered, feebly, surprised at his own reaction to her question. Lisanna returned him with a gaze of sympathy, before moving to right the table.

_(Hey… Do you know how it feels like when I can't understand your feelings?)_

"–I just don't know what to do!" Lucy finished, throwing her arms in the air while she paced across her bedroom.

Loke blinked.

"I… uh, think you're having something called 'love trouble-'" he was cut off.

"I am _NOT_ in love with him!" she screeched. "How did you come up with _that_ conclusion?!"

"Well, it would explain why you're so happy when you go on missions with him, as you said, along with being happier when you're alone with him, and why you're jealous. Also, why would you come to me about this stuff?"

"I'm not jealous, either! I come to you since you're a guy - and I trust you - so maybe you would understand Natsu."

Loke raised his eyebrows.

"I'm a guy who's in love with you, so I may not exactly be honest about Natsu's feelings - accompanied by the fact that Natsu is… pretty slow when it comes to knowing things like 'love.' You're hitting a dead end if you love him, Lucy."

Lucy released a yell of vexation, and plopped down to sit on her bed.

"_Fine._ It's okay if he doesn't return my feelings - THAT I DON'T HAVE, BY THE WAY," Lucy added. "What about Lisanna, though? Does he have feelings for her, then? Uh, not that I care, of course, just… thought I could know more about my partner."

"Hm…" Loke frowned, thinking. "Honestly, I'm foolish to say this, but I don't think he does. In my opinion, they're just really close friends, like you and I. Natsu is clingy, and he has every right to be. I mean, it would be devastating to lose a friend, and be scared that they would disappear when they've just come back. I could be wrong, but that's how I see it." The celestial spirit gave her a weak smile. "It hurts to know the farthest we can be is the best of friends, but it's nice that you trust me this much."

"I'm sorry." She pursed her lips, and looked genuinely apologetic and sincere. It was because she was. Lucy didn't realize how it would hurt Loke if she tried going to him for help.

"No need to apologize." Pushing up his glasses with his middle and index finger, Loke then paused for a second. "Wait, you said you wanted to know if Natsu had feelings for you, right?"

"Um… Yes?" Lucy's eyes widened at the sudden question. There was glint in Loke's eyes that made her uneasy. That glint was often what reflected off Natsu's eyes whenever he got one of his crazy ideas.

"There's one thing I know that gets someone who's in love with you to make a move automatically," Loke began, an evident mischievous grin forming on his face.

Lucy swallowed. Why did she get the distinct feeling that she wasn't going to approve of this idea?

"What would that be?" she asked anyway. Loke chuckled.

"You'll see. Happy's coming back from the mission with Wendy tomorrow, you know."

"Eh?" Lucy didn't have the slightest idea what Happy had to do with anything.

_(Hey… Do you know how jealous you make me feel?)_

The guild seemed to brighten up when the doors swung open quite harshly, revealing a small, blue-haired girl, a blue cat, and a white cat. They were accompanied by Erza and Gray (with Juvia clinging onto him).

"We're back!" Wendy cheered. The mission seemed to have gone extremely well for them. Happy flew over to Natsu, right before his wings disappeared, leaving him to plummet onto the hard surface of the table.

"_Ow!_ Natsu! Hey, where's Lucy?" Happy frowned upon seeing his companion deep in thought. He hadn't noticed Happy at all. "Natsu?"

The Dragon Slayer blinked, shaking his head. His eyes perked up as they met Happy.

"Happy! You're back!" Natsu grabbed the exceed from the table and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug.

Once he let go, Happy found himself grateful for the rush of oxygen that entered his lungs again.

"Did you hear, Natsu? Did you hear?" Happy tried to shout over the loud welcoming from Fairy Tail for their return.

"Yeah?"

"Lucy and Loke are dating!" he grinned, expecting Natsu to return the joy.

Five words.

It was only five words.

Yet, those five words caused the whole guild to go completely silent, as if a mute button was pressed immediately after Happy spoke. Guild members had paused in their cheers and warm welcomes. Gray was still, paused in the position of trying to pull Juvia off of him. Erza froze in a mid-lecturing using her sword instead of words. Mirajane's hands stopped in creating a mixture of a drink.

The one thing everyone had done simultaneously, however, was turn to gape at Happy, unbelieving of his words. Happy wasn't unaware of the sudden attention directed at him.

"Um, guys? Why is everyone staring at me like that?" He flinched upon turning back to see Natsu.

The pink-haired teen's temperature was rising incredibly fast, up into the point where a normal person would have burned to ashes. Was he mad? Of course not.

Natsu had flown right past angry and crash-landed in full-blown exploding rage, which was actually possible, as he was seconds away from literally exploding into flames. And he had no idea why! He had no idea _why_ he was so pissed that Lucy was dating Loke. He should be happy. His partner had a boyfriend. He should be happy.

Ah, but he wasn't.

Natsu wasn't even conscious of himself walking toward the doors of the guild, his every footstep leaving a scorch-mark in the shape of a footprint on the ground. He was going to ask Lucy about this. She would probably deny it, right? She couldn't be dating Loke. The idea itself was… infuriating, inflaming to Natsu. Literally.

When the doors were slammed closed as the Fire Dragon Slayer left, time began moving again. The guild erupted into yelled, _screamed_ questions at the poor exceed of how he came to such an idea, and why he had to announce it directly in front of _Natsu _of all people.

Happy didn't know how to answer without saying that Loke had instructed him specifically to tell Natsu that he was officially going out with Lucy, along with Lucy hesitantly agreeing alongside with him. This had to be worth getting a few dozen fish from the lion spirit...

_(Hey… Do you know how much I love you?)_

Was it worth it? This could all be for nothing. Natsu could really be in love with Lisanna, and not give a single care for this. Or, he could have feelings for her, and either be angry with her or get the urge to kill Loke.

None of the outcomes were looking good.

"You're _sure_ this'll prove he has feelings for me? It won't just provoke useless annoyance or anger?" Lucy asked warily.

"Only for me, really. Do you know how stupid it is for a guy who loves a girl to be helping another guy to realize he loves that same girl? I think this is the closest I'll ever get to dating you - by_ faking_ that I'm dating you. It's pitiful." Loke let out a humorless laugh.

They were walking side-by-side as an eye-catching duo. A blonde-haired woman in normal blue clothing walking alongside with a spiky, orange-haired man wearing a designer suit.

Lucy had to wonder, though. Loke was always beside her. When Natsu couldn't make it, he would be there to save her. Even with the knowledge that she couldn't return his feelings, he was still very friendly with her. Even with the knowledge that she loves someone else, he still helped her.

Looking back up at him, she felt… selfish, then. Who was she to make him help her like this? Sure, the idea was his, but he was only doing it _for_ her. It was unbelievably selfish of her to let him do this for her.

Without even thinking, she turned and pulled him into her arms, into a hug. It was only a friendly hug, nothing more, but it was a friendly hug filled with emotions. It wasn't part of the plan and was genuine, but Lucy thought she could at least do this much for him.

Tentatively, Loke returned her abrupt action, although he was confused.

"Lucy?"

"Thanks. For everything you've ever done for me," she mumbled quietly against his shoulder.

"It's no problem for a celestial spirit like me to help a mage such as yourself. Anyone who meets you is considered lucky." There was something in his voice that caused Lucy to look up in surprise, but she never got to see the expression on his face.

The lion spirit was violently yanked without warning away from her by a certain Dragon Slayer, who held him by the collar of his suit. Natsu's usual cheerful expression was replaced by one he often directed at opponents he detested. He looked ready to murder.

Lucy noticed this, and was about intervene before she saw Natsu lower his gaze to the ground for a second. After a second, he looked back up to Lucy with an almost desperate expression, then back at Loke, then to Lucy again.

With a small growl at the lion, he released his hold and moved to grab Lucy's wrist gently.

"Could you… come with me for a few minutes?" he asked quietly. It wasn't like Natsu to be quiet.

Lucy nodded, seeing Loke giving her two thumbs up and mouthing, "Good luck!" from behind Natsu.

_(Of course you don't… But that's why I'm here. To remind you.)_

Natsu stopped in a small alley, a few blocks away from where they were before. He let go of her wrist, and ran a hand through his hair.

"Luce… What's wrong with me?"

A sudden worry grabbing her attention, she leaned forward a little to inspect him.

"What do you mean? Are you okay? Is it that fever from last time returning?"

"No," he began pacing back and forth in the alley. "It's just that… I was so _angry_ when I saw you with Loke. Recently, it's been like that every time I saw you with Loke, really. And then… And then Happy came back earlier saying that you guys were…" Natsu stopped. His eyes flickered to Lucy's, a hint of anguish in them. "You're not dating Loke, are you?"

Lucy took a step back. _Dating?_ That's what Loke had bribed Happy to say? She knew they were trying to _look _like they were dating, but actually making the cat announce that they _were_? She wasn't aware of that part! Still, Lucy decided to be honest toward the frantic Dragon Slayer.

"No…"

"Really?" Natsu stepped towards her. "You're not saying that to make me feel better, are you?"

"Yes. I mean, no - to answer your second question." He just looked even more confused. It was clear that she needed to clarify. "I mean that, we're not dating."

Natsu visibly relaxed, letting out a sigh of relief, before pausing.

"And now I feel relieved. Why? I should be _happy_ that you're dating someone!" he grabbed Lucy by the shoulders, shocking her. "_What's wrong with me, Luce?!_"

"Um… Maybe you're jealous?" Lucy suggested, still surprised at his unexpected physical contact with her.

"Why would I be-" he froze mid-sentence and looked away, his face turning a bright shade of red. "Oh," a mumble. "This is what Lisanna meant."

"Natsu? Are you okay?"

"Lucy." He stared into her eyes, a serious expression fixed on that made her nervous. He was still holding her shoulders, inches away from her face. What was going on? What escalated to this?

"Y-Yes?"

"I think I love you."

Five words.

It was only five words.

Yet, those five words caused Lucy to unintentionally put tomatoes to shame. Her face rose in shades of red quickly, as her mind refused to comprehend the meaning of three words in those five words.

"What?" she squeaked out.

"I think I-uh, n-never mind." Upon realizing the truth of his words, Natsu backtracked on his words. "I… Oh screw it. You're going to make me repeat this, anyway. Lucy, I love you. I'm a complete idiot for never realizing." He looked almost fearful of what she would reply.

Lucy opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again, then closed it again - succeeding in looking like a fish. Finally, her lips curved into a small smile.

"I love you, too." She felt proud of herself for not stuttering.

He grinned brighter than the sun at that time, and pulled her into an embrace that was more than just friendly. It made Lucy muse to herself, _I take back my words. Maybe jealousy isn't so bad after all._

* * *

><p><strong>No kiss scene, sorry. We all have to admit Natsu <strong>_**is**_** slow in realizing things like love, and I already pushed the limits by allowing Natsu to just understand the one time Lisanna explained **_**love **_**to him. To me, I feel like them kissing just like that is a bit too unrealistic and too much. You are free to imagine a kiss scene in your mind though. This was only like, three pages, and then I thought it was too short, so it turned into 11 pages. xD Please review! :D**


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